'A very happy ending': St. Charles woman returns home

ST. CHARLES – The 89-year-old St. Charles woman who was reported missing Sunday is now home, St. Charles Police Department spokesman Paul McCurtain said Tuesday morning.

"She's in good shape," he said, adding Sarah Mignin was very upbeat and very happy when talking with a St. Charles police officer.

Mignin on Monday visited a Panda Express in East Lansing, Mich., where she started asking for directions to Illinois, police said. Customers reportedly heard her talking, could tell she was confused and were able to get the names of her relatives and their telephone numbers.

The customers contacted Mignin's family, who then contacted the St. Charles Police Department, police said.

"The family was very relieved," McCurtain said. "It was a very happy ending."

Police had been searching for Mignin since Sunday morning, when she failed to arrive at her daughter's St. Charles home for a visit. She had reportedly contacted her daughter that morning, saying she was on her way.

Police on Sunday morning conducted a well-being check at her home in the 3200 block of Renard Lane. The house was secure, police said, and there were no signs of foul play. Mignin's 2004 white Honda Accord wasn't in the garage.

A broader search then began that involved authorities in the Tri-Cities, Kane County and Illinois State Police District Two, police said. Officers checked open businesses, restaurants and hospitals. They even checked with the LEADS System and determined no other police department had checked on Mignin's license plate, police said.

Through credit card activity, St. Charles police knew Mignin bought gasoline at a gas station in Walworth, Wis., at 12:16 p.m. Sunday and made a purchase at 10:30 a.m. Monday in Woodland, Mich., which is west of Lansing, McCurtain said.

McCurtain said she didn't recall how she spent Sunday night and does not remember why she traveled to Wisconsin.